Chapter 5

FIVE

COLLINS

It was hard to leave my mother at the portal after everything we’d been through since Bash first showed his face at The Sapphire Casino. Especially since she nearly died protecting me. I wasn’t the same girl though. That Collins was terrified. That Collins didn’t have a single idea of what was going on or what her magic even did. But now Collins knew. I had to train and learn my craft, and that was why I had to give my mother one last squeeze, then leap through the portal.

My heart hurt for Weston and Shylock who were in the infirmary at The Emerald—the home of Araqiel and Zuriel and the portals to all the other realms. Nickel’s mother was the angel Hecca who had healing powers, so Nickel had healing powers. They all assured me of this as she vanished with them down a hallway inside The Emerald. It made me sick with worry. I prayed they’d be okay.

Tallulah’s face flashed in my mind as the light of the portal flashed all around me. My heart sank and my chest grew tight. My stomach rolled like I was going to vomit, but I had to breathe through it. I had to focus. Phillip and Vic promised they’d look into rescuing my best friend. She was their daughter and sister, so I knew they worried just as I did. I couldn’t save Tallulah right now, I had to focus on saving an entire realm of people. Not to mention all of First Realm too. Because there would be no stopping this monster.

Tallulah would understand.

Tallulah would yell at me for worrying about her in a time like this.

I closed my eyes and pressed my hand to my chest, feeling my fingers tremble a little. I will come for you, bro. Just hang on a bit longer, wherever you are.

As the light of the portal vanished, I opened my eyes and found we were back in that stone room with only an antique silver mirror propped against the wall—the portal. That narrow stairwell that led up to that glass room surrounded by their lush garden was to the right. Metal sconces hung on the wall every few feet with big candles on them. The flames held steady almost like they were fake, but I knew it was part of their magic.

Because I was in Second Realm. Home of the mages.

Earlier when we’d come here—which was probably yesterday at this point—I hadn’t really grasped the weight of it. This was an entirely different realm of people who could all perform magic. That was wild to me. I’d barely gotten a taste of the mages on Megelle Island when Bash snatched Tallulah. And I hadn’t seen a single other person in Third Realm aside from Bash’s family.

“Collins?” Maren ducked her face in front of mine and waved her hand. “Are you all right?”

I flinched and looked around. The others were all staring at me. My heart sank. “I zoned out, didn’t I?”

Savina smirked and nodded. “I was the first one to find Ellie when her whole journey began. I recognize that look on your face. It’s overwhelming right now, but it will get easier.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m worried about,” I grumbled. “Sorry, did I miss anything?”

Maren shook her head. She pressed her hand to Savina’s cheek and nodded. “Bring him to me. I’ll go ahead to prepare.”

Savina closed her eyes and nodded.

Maren glanced to me. “I will bring something to heal you as soon as I get him stabilized.”

I frowned and looked down at myself. Am I injured and didn’t realize it?

“Thank you, Maren.” Bash’s voice was thick and rough.

I gasped. BASH. He’d been so in control in the last few minutes that I’d forgotten he’d been injured. Or maybe I’d blocked it from memory because I didn’t want to think about losing him. But when I spun and found him leaning against the stone wall behind me, my stomach shot up my throat. He was bleeding from three places on his left side. His moonstone eyes were pale and weak, like standing took a lot out of him. I cursed and raced to his side, propping him up with my body weight.

He smiled down at me, then turned back to Maren. “I have nothing life-threatening at play here, Your Grace. I can wait until Prince Stellan is doing better.”

“Thank you.” She spun on her toes and sprinted down the hall and out of sight.

My stomach tightened into knots. That meant Stellan was not okay. But when I actually looked over at Prince Stellan, my breath left me in a rush. There was so much blood I couldn’t even tell where the wound was. His eyes were closed, and his head rolled on his shoulders. Ellie had her hands pressed to his chest, blood caking her fingers. He swayed and hissed. Ellie cursed. Her eyes filled with tears.

Savina pressed her hands to her stomach like the sight of her injured brother was going to make her sick. Her face was pale. “Hecca gave us thirty minutes of stability. The portals just locked behind us. That means we’ve got ten before the two of you start leaking properly. Ellie, get Stellan to the infirmary.”

Ellie nodded. Her purple magic swirled around Stellan’s feet and carried him slowly down the hallway. Ellie glanced over her shoulder and gave us a wobbly smile. “I hope you feel better soon, Bash. Get some rest, Collins. Do not use your magic at all tonight. I’m serious. You’ve only got three days to train, so you need rest to start tomorrow.”

“Okay. I won’t. Promise.” I didn’t know what to do, so I just gave her a thumbs-up. “Just get him healed, please.”

They hobbled down the hall very, very slowly.

Savina sighed and squeezed the bridge of her nose. “Bastien, I’m sorry, but we can’t risk anyone else seeing you. My people don’t know the other realms exist. I’ll get you settled into one of our guest quarters, and Maren will come see to your wounds there.”

“Thank you, Savina. We really appreciate everything you’ve done for us.”

“It’s an honor to help.” She gave me a small smile and waved for us to follow her. Now that we were back in her realm, her waistcoat went from looking like a leather jacket to a long cloak that dragged the ground behind her. A huge crown sparkled on her head with giant rubies. In an instant, she was every bit the Queen we knew her to be. “Clearly, Bastien helped us survive, even if we didn’t know it at the time. Regardless, we’re in this together or we all die together.”

"I wish that weren’t true, given how many injuries you all have suffered for us already.” I wrapped my arm around Bash’s waist, forcing his left arm to drape around my shoulders. He was practically twice my size, so I doubted I was much help, but I was going to try anyway.

We moved slowly down the hall. Savina fidgeted with her fingers. Her red magic flicked all around the hem of her cloak as she walked. “Stellan is strong. Between Ellie’s power and Maren’s healing magic, he’ll be back on his feet soon enough.”

Her voice didn’t sound as confident as it usually did, but I was going to go with it.

“Shylock and Weston will brag about this forever.” She managed a small chuckle. “And those damn Nephilim heal faster than anyone. It’s the angel blood in their veins.”

“ Your majesty? ”

Savina stopped and half-turned to us with a frown. “Please, call me Savina.”

Bash nodded once. His face was tight. “Savina. Please help Ellie get Stellan to Maren. She’ll move faster with you. We will make our way in the appropriate direction and then wait for you. I am fine . . . just sore and spent.”

“He’s right. I’ve got him.”

Her face fell. “At the end of this hall, turn right, then make the first left. I’ll be right there.”

“Right and then a left. Got it.” I smiled. “Go ahead.”

“Thank you!” She spun and sprinted full speed ahead.

Bash and I kept moving slowly. When Savina caught up to her brother and Ellie, she swatted Ellie out of the way, then pressed her hands to Stellan’s body. Ellie flicked her wrists, and a purple cloud scooped them up and flew them away.

Bash chuckled softly. “That’s convenient.”

I looked up to his face and grimaced. “Are you all right? Do you need to rest a minute?”

“I’m okay,” he said with a voice that was barely more than a whisper. “I used a lot of my magic trying to get that damn portal to us. My mother is?—”

“Your mother.” I shook my head. “Is that it? Because your wounds look gnarly.”

He smirked and then hissed. “They hurt. Nasty buggers they are, but I have faith in the mage’s healing abilities. Also, fae and vampires heal quicker than mages.”

“Why is that?”

“Perks of longer lifespans, I suppose.”

“I don’t want to even think about how long I could live.”

“What were you thinking about?” He looked down at me like he was searching my face for the answers. “When we came through the portal.”

“I was having a bit of an existential crisis, I think. It’s still so weird to me that other realms exist. That non-humans exist. I keep forgetting I’m not human. But, literally? I was wondering if there were other fae living in Third Realm. It can’t just be your family, yet I can’t remember if I saw other people there.”

“Ah, I see. Yes, there are a lot of civilians in Third Realm. They live in villages in the shadows of my mother’s palace.” He snarled. “They used to live farther away from her, as far as possible, but when the realm began to freeze, they had to move close. Fae are sensitive to the cold, as I’m sure you’ve noticed, and my mother is the only thing keeping them alive, so they live nearby. I’ve used my magic over the last few decades to help protect them from my family as much as I possibly could.”

I pushed up on my toes and kissed his cheek. “That’s for them.”

He blushed bright-pink.

“I want to meet them.”

“I’m sure you will. My mother is going to use them against us at some point.”

I shuddered at the thought. “What’s her problem anyway?”

“That’s a loaded question.”

“It just blows my mind. All of this.” I waved my arm. “How did we even get here? How did a woman like your mother gain so much power?”

“What do you know about the history of all our species and the world?”

“At this point, I’m not sure what I know.” I laughed. “My mom, Phillip, and Victoria told us some stuff . . . but that feels like a decade ago now. I know they mentioned your mother and the stones but with everything that’s happened I can’t quite recall what it was.”

“That’s fair.”

“Tell me again? Unless talking is making you feel worse?”

“I’ll tell you. It shall distract me from the pain and fatigue. It all started when the Garden of Eden fell.” I must’ve made a face because he nodded. “That long ago, yes. So, after that, only humans lived on Earth, but they grew rowdy and uncontrolled. God sent Araqiel to check on things, who then reported back to Heaven that the humans needed watching. He chose Zuriel and eight other angels to come back to Earth with him. You saw all of them tonight. I don’t think anyone besides me realized how huge that was.”

“Felt monumental.”

“Yes, they’re something to behold for sure. In fact, the humans were so afraid of the angels that the situation got worse. So, Araqiel created the Nephilim—a race of being half-human and half-angel. They looked human but were stronger, faster, and had wings. The humans did not fear them in the same way, so the Nephilim became the . . . the . . . what do you call them?”

“Police? Like to control the humans and shit?”

He smiled. “And shit. Exactly. Now, I’ve never gotten the details on how this next part happened—I don’t think any Earth-born individuals know—but a group of humans managed to open up the doorway to the monsters of other realms.”

“Why would they do that?” I asked as we finally reached the end of the stone hallway. We made a wide right turn onto a corridor that was open with only columns to support the roof. Fresh nighttime breeze swept over us. “Why would anyone want to do that?”

“They wanted to kill the Nephilim. They thought the monsters would eradicate them and thus grant them their freedom." He shook his head and stared out at the twinkling stars in the black sky. “Human nature has never changed, not in its entire existence. A war broke out. It was apparently a bloodbath. The Watchers had to interfere. This is, of course, the vague summary of the story because it was a few thousand years ago.”

“One day, I want to ask Araqiel for the details of this story.”

He stopped and hung his head, laughing. His arm draped around my shoulder pulled me flush against his body. When he looked over at me, his eyes held that same sparkle I was used to. He pressed his lips to my temple, then stood up straight. “God, I want to see his face when you ask.”

“I’ll bring tacos with me?”

“Make sure Zuriel is there. His reaction should be almost as good.”

I grinned but didn’t start walking because I felt his energy screaming for a break. “Deal. So what happened next?”

“Well, the monsters were forced out by the Watchers, and to keep them out, God created the Origin Stones of power and sent them to Earth to serve as protection. They were placed all around the world and then the surviving Nephilim were told to protect the Stones and were stationed at these locations.”

“Just take a break for a second.” I steered him to the wall and forced him to lean against it. “What locations? Mom, Philip, and Vic gave us a stupid brief summary of the history which included the Origin Stones and people touching them but not a lot of details on those things. Actually, pretend I’ve never heard the story and tell me.”

“Your family most likely has some of the details wrong, or should I say the wrong timing. A lot of the truth has been lost, just like with human history.” He leaned against the wall and took a few deep breaths. Then he licked his lips and twirled a strand of my pink and purple hair around his fingers. “So the Creation Stone was the most intense, it was placed beneath the sea to help contain it. That location is now referred to as the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Once the Stone was set, it created abundant life underwater.”

My jaw dropped.

“The Blood Stone was placed in what they call Egypt now. Their placement caused the?—”

“ Pyramids? It caused the pyramids, didn’t it?”

He grinned and nodded.

I whistled. “Intense. This is incredible. Keep going.”

“There were two kinda sorta relatively close to each other, sitting on either side of what’s now called the Appalachian Mountains because those mountains are the oldest thing in this realm. The Divinity Stone was set to the northeast of the mountains, but its power caused the ground to open up. You’d call that location Niagara Falls.” He stopped and pointed behind me. “The Stone placed on the southwest side of the mountains similarly made the ground explode, but it was a drier climate so there was no waterfall. That’s now called the Grand Canyon.”

My eyes widened. “Which Stone made that?”

“The Astral Stone.”

I gasped and glanced around. “ Their Stone? The Stone of Second Realm—wait a second. Blood Stone? That must be the Stone for Fourth Realm and the vampires? What about ours?”

“Ah, the Chaos Stone was a bit of a rebel true to the nature of its name. It was placed in the Arctic Circle, but it sent a ripple of power which traveled all the way down and wound up creating Stonehenge.”

I snapped my fingers. “ Crystal-henge. This makes sense.”

“Indeed. Now, the Nephilim were stationed around the world around each of the Origin Stones to protect the thing that was protecting them while the humans continued their lives as usual. But there was one Nephilim who was furious that they were being punished for the actions of the humans, since it was the humans who brought in the monsters, not them.”

“Uh oh.”

He smirked. “That one Nephilim was the leader of their Stone Station, so they communicated with the leaders of stations at two other Stones and convinced them . . . to touch them.”

I flinched. “Touch the Origin Stones? Why?”

“The ringleader had their own personal reasons but they insisted there was power radiating off of the Stones, and if they touched them, it would give them some power. But they had to do it at the same time or Araqiel and Zuriel would interfere.”

“Why only two others?”

“Apparently, the leaders stationed by the Creation and Divinity Stones did not harbor the same resentment.” He pushed off the wall. “Come, let us continue before I fall asleep right here.”

I chuckled and slipped his arm back around my shoulders. Once we were moving again, I asked, “So, what happened? I know they agreed to touch them.”

“They did agree. There were two brothers who led the Astral Stone Station and a married couple who led the Blood Stone Station. All five of them touched their Stones at the same time.” He hissed as we made that left turn. “That one Nephilim was right. Touching the Stones gave them power, but it changed them. The two brothers were turned into mages and the couple became vampires. But not just them. Sure, they were the ones who physically touched the Stone, so they got the most power, but each and every Nephilim at their station was turned into these other species as well.”

We passed a bench, and Bash lowered himself down onto it and leaned back. I sat beside him and curled my legs under me, resting them partially on his thigh so I could take his hand in both of mine.

“Who was the one Nephilim who started it all? What did they turn into when they touched their Stone?”

He stared at the ground for a moment, then turned those moonstones eyes on me. “That one Nephilim . . . was my mother.”

I gasped. My eyes widened. I was pretty sure my heart stopped.

He nodded. “Now you see? You see how twisted she is? How fucked up and selfish she is? How powerful she is? My mother was literally the first fae ever. She is the reason fae exist. Had she never craved power, the world would have remained human and Nephilim.”

“Well, fuck.”

He laughed and brought my hand up to his mouth. With a dimpled grin, he kissed the back of my hand. “I adore you.”

Butterflies filled my stomach. Everywhere his skin touched mine, my body tingled and buzzed. But as exciting as his touch was, my heart sank as his words really clicked. “We are screwed, aren’t we? I mean, how are we supposed to defeat the person who started all this? Who has been alive for thousands of years?”

“The same way every underdog in history has ever claimed victory.” He exhaled with a sigh. “But first, we have to kill my family. All of them . . . so she has no allies to work with.”

“What about the other leaders she convinced to touch their Stones? They’re not her allies?”

“Mages are mortal. Their lifespans are not much longer than a human’s lifespan. So, those brothers died. The truth has been passed down through legend and folklore within the Wentworth family to their current Queen and her brother, the Prince.”

“Savina and Stellan.” I swallowed roughly. “Well, at least we have them on our side.”

“And the married couple who became vampires? Empress Clementine blames my mother for the death of her husband. There will be no help for my mother in Fourth Realm. She’s told us that before. So if we isolate her, we have a chance.”

“It’ll still take one hell of a strategy to beat her. I mean, we barely survived tonight.”

He reached up and ran his fingertips across my cheek, then tucked my hair behind my ear, lingering on the sharp points of my new ears. When I closed my eyes, he tipped my chin up, forcing me to open my eyes and look at him.

“Listen to me, I don’t want you to think about that for three days.”

“I’m the Stone Keeper, Bash. It’s like, literally, my job to think about how to take her down.”

He shook his head. “No, you’re the Stone Keeper. Your job is to find the Chaos Stone before she does and save Third Realm from dying. Technically, my mother does not have to die in order for you to do that.”

I arched my eyebrow.

He dropped his hand and chuckled. “I did say technically. ”

“Right, right, right. No big deal. I’ll play your technically game. But I still have no idea how to find the Chaos Stone. I don’t know how to be . . . this . . . this . . . person I was born to be.”

“For the next three days, all you have to do is train. That’s why we’re here, so you can learn how to be the strongest version of yourself. To learn your magic and the extent of your power. That way, the next time you enter Third Realm, you won’t feel so out of touch.”

“No more existential crisis?”

He smiled. “And then we’ll figure out together how to take her down for good.”

“I swear to God you better not die on me.”

He chuckled. “Right back at you.”

“And then once she’s dead, you’ll help me find Tallulah.”

“You have my word.”

“Thank you.” I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his. “I’m sorry we took that potion to swap appearances.”

“Don’t be. She’d only be in danger trying to fight alongside you.”

I grinned. “I feel bad for wherever that locked portal sent her.”

Savina flew around the corner up ahead. Her eyes widened when she spotted us sitting on the bench. “I'm sorry that took me so long?—”

“Nah, nah. We just got here.” I smiled and jumped to my feet. “How’s Stellan?”

“Stable.” She sighed with relief. But then her green eyes landed on Bash and that relief vanished. “But let’s get you on that path.”

I held my hand out and pulled him to his feet. “Lead the way.”

She nodded and waved for us to follow her around the corner. When we did, she was waiting for us at a large wooden door just a few feet away. “Right in here.”

We followed her through the door and then I froze. My jaw dropped. The room was huge, with tall, vaulted ceilings and golden candles flickering with flame everywhere I looked. It was dim in the room, but with the candles and the moonlight streaming in through the open terrace straight ahead, I made out a cozy living room.

“Straight out is the terrace that overlooks the garden and the Astral Stone, which I thought you might like.” Savina turned to the right and walked through an open doorway. Once we crossed the threshold, we entered a large bedroom with the same terrace doors open along one wall. “So, one of you can have this room. The other can take the room down the hall.”

“I can take the other, it’s fine?—”

“No, don’t go.” I grabbed the lapel of his coat and tugged. “I don’t want to be alone. Stay with me tonight? Please?”

His cheeks flushed and a little smile tugged on his lips. “If you’d like me to, then yes.”

“Thank you,” I said softly.

“Great, so then, Bash, come this way please.” Savina spun and walked through a closed door. “Time to heal you.”

We followed her into a bathroom seemingly made of marble. It was gorgeous with the dim candlelight. Savina had walked to the far side of the bathroom to the massive tub and turned the water on. Then she pulled three vials out of her cloak, each a different shade of purple. She uncapped them one at a time, then dumped the liquid into the tub.

“What’s that?”

She shoved the now empty vials into her pocket and smiled at us. “Maren’s healing potions.”

“Oh, that’s it?” I blinked and walked over to see if the water looked different. It didn’t, except for a slight sparkle. “Magic bath bombs.”

“Bath bombs?” Bash chuckled. “I am sure that sounds more entertaining to me than you.”

I giggled. “Shut up.”

Savina reached into the water, then nodded and turned the faucets off. The tub had already filled in that short time. “This is just step one of healing. She wants you to get in here and soak.”

“For how long?” I bent down and began untying Bash’s boots. When I tapped his leg, he lifted it and let me pull them off one at a time. “Like all night?”

“Maren just needs a little more time with Stellan,” Savina said with a tight voice. “She promised she’ll be over as soon as possible to check on how you’re healing and take the next step. Shouldn’t be too much longer. I would remove your coat and shirt and make sure those wounds get into the water.”

“But leave his pants on because Maren will need to come in here.”

Savina cracked a smile. “Well, Maren’s my wife, so I don’t think seeing a man in the nude would affect her, but to keep things a bit less awkward . . .”

We all chuckled.

“Thank you, Savina. Tell Maren we’re in here when she’s ready.” Bash smiled. “Do not worry about lingering here. Go to your brother.”

Her shoulders dropped. “Thank you. If for any reason you need to find us, just come out the door to the right—the opposite direction you came from—and make two rights and then a left and you’ll find the infirmary.”

We waved goodbye and watched her leave.

Then I spun on Bash. “All right. Let’s get this coat off. Right side first.”

The uninjured side was easy, but the wounded side was sticking to his flesh from all the dried blood. Once we got it off, I carefully walked it over to hang it on the hook on the wall. I wonder if they have some magic to get these blood stains out?

Bash hissed.

I spun around only to find him sinking into the water in the tub. “You all right?”

He squeezed his eyes shut and leaned back as he lowered himself into the water so his shoulder was covered. “It’s somehow both cold and warm.”

“Is that weird?” I walked over and sat on the built-in step outside the tub so I was face-to-face with him. “Does it hurt?”

He frowned and shook his head, his eyes still closed. “It’s refreshing . . . and tingles.”

“I’m glad.” I reached forward and ran my fingers through his now wet hair, letting the pale-blue strands graze over my skin. “Must feel nice.”

He opened his eyes and looked at me. “I’m glad you’re okay. I thought . . . for a moment tonight, I thought . . .” He shook his head.

“You thought I wasn’t going to make it?”

“Yes.” He reached up and cupped my face with one hand. “I was trying to get to you. Thank God Savina was there.”

“I shouldn’t have tackled her like that, but I panicked.” I gripped his wrist and squeezed. “When you were buried in that sand, I just panicked and rational thought ran right out the door.”

“What a pair we are.” He smirked.

I wanted to ask if he meant that literally or figuratively, but a lot had happened in one day. That could wait. His healing was the most important. “How are we looking? Healing yet?”

“I think it will take more time than that.” He chuckled.

I looked down to peek at his wounds beneath the surface of the water when my gaze landed on the inside of his left forearm. It was a tattoo of some kind. I hadn’t noticed it before, but it was beautiful. It was two dark triangles pointing in opposite directions surrounded by colorful wildflowers and green leaves and then a turquoise butterfly at the bottom. It felt very fae to me, though I couldn’t quite put my finger on why.

“ Pretty, isn’t it ?” Bash whispered.

“Very.” I stared at it. “Have you had this the whole time I've known you?”

“I’ve had this for about two decades.”

I shook my head. “How did I not see this before? I know you had your coat on, but still . . .”

He smiled. “Well, in First Realm it looks different.”

“How so?”

“In First Realm, it presents itself as a line of words written in an elegant dark scroll. But in the other realms, it shows as this.”

I traced my fingertips over the lines of the tattoo. “Why words? And which words?”

“The first words that were spoken to me . . .”

My eyes widened. “By your soulmate.”

It wasn’t a question. I knew it. My mother and Phillip had just explained soulmates to me on the train. They were soulmates. She’d said the marks appeared as the first words their soulmate spoke to them. My pulse was flying higher than the stars. I tried to speak and ask questions, but my mouth went dry. Bastien had a soulmate. A soulmate.

“Collins?”

“Two decades?” I shook my head, trying to rein in the wildfire of emotions raging through me. My heart hurt like someone had impaled me, which made no sense because I barely knew him. “Wh-wh-ho-o is your . . . soulmate? Wh-where a-are th-they? Twenty years. You kissed me. You let me kiss you? You have a soulmate?—”

“ Collins. ” He pressed one finger to my lips to stop me. “My whole life this arm was blank. I didn’t know I had a soulmate until a little over twenty years ago when this mark appeared. I knew in that moment that my soulmate had just been born.”

My jaw dropped. “ Born? ”

“That’s how this works. If two soulmates are born at the exact same time, then the marks appear at the exact same time. However, if person A is born earlier than person B, then when person B is born, the mark will appear on person A’s arm and person B will be born with the mark. Does that make sense?”

I swallowed through a hot lump in my throat. “How do you know who it is?”

“Aside from the obvious answer that you feel it . . .” he held his own arm out straighter, “. . . soulmate marks are unique. No other soulmate pairing will have this exact design, so I keep my eyes on the arms of people I meet.”

“And the words . . . in First Realm . . .”

“Correct. Once I went to First Realm after this appeared, I learned what my soulmate’s first words to me were going to be.” He grinned. “I have been waiting a long time to hear them.”

I tried to smile, but my body was not responding. “What are those words?”

He grinned and sat forward, his moonstone eyes meeting mine. “We’ll burn that bridge when we get there.”

I frowned. “You mean you haven’t heard anyone say?—”

His smile widened.

My jaw dropped.

He chuckled softly.

I shook my head. “I said that to you.”

“Yes, you did.”

I blinked rapidly. “In the casino that night . . . the first time I saw you.”

His grin turned sideways. “Right after you slid that little silver pouch across the bar to me, that’s what you said.”

“But . . . but no . . . it can’t be . . . I don’t have that mark.”

“To protect you, your appearance was glamoured when you were taken to First Realm as a baby.”

He smiled down at his arm. “My mother sent me there that night to kill you. I knew I wasn’t before I even got there, but then I saw you. I don’t have words to explain the affect you had on me when I saw you. And then you slid that silver thing to me, and I was confused because I didn’t know what that was and I couldn’t speak to ask—and then you said it. You said the words that’d been written on my arm for over twenty years.”

My eyes watered. “But . . . but . . .”

“The true appearance of the Stone Keepers was hidden to protect them but . . .” With gentle, careful fingers, he reached outside of the tub and took my left hand in his. He sat forward and then used his other hand to slowly slide the long black sleeve of my top up to my elbow. “Once you stepped foot inside Third Realm that entire glamour vanished and it appeared.”

I gasped and a little shriek slipped out. Because there, on my arm, was the exact same image as his. I held my arm up next to his and whimpered. They were identical. A stray tear slid down my cheek. My arm trembled. I’d had sleeves on the whole time, covering it so I hadn’t seen it.

“Do you see now why I behaved the way I did?” He cupped my face with his hands. “When you said those words to me, that exact incorrect usage of that phrase, I knew it was you. I knew you were the one. My one. And I panicked. I am so sorry for the way I scared you, but I was so terrified my mother would get her hands on you first.”

“The dream. That’s how that dream . . . with the necklace?”

“I had to protect you.” He stroked my cheeks with his thumbs. “Time was up. My sisters were involved. I had to grab you from Megelle Island, and I had to be quick or they’d catch me?—”

“That’s how you grabbed Tallulah so recklessly without realizing she wasn’t me.”

“All I knew was my soulmate was in danger and I had to get her to a safe place.” His face fell. “And then there was no mark on your arm, and I was confused. A little devastated, actually, because I thought I’d finally found you. And Tallulah is . . . a force of nature. It happened so fast.”

I sighed and gripped his wrists. “When did you know it was me?”

“The Astral Stone showed me.” He smiled and looked down at my arm. “But I won’t pretend that seeing it for the first time with my own eyes isn’t a relief.”

I laughed in a short burst. “It is such a relief to not feel crazy for feeling so many things for a man I just met.”

His gaze swept over my face. “Ah, but it does not feel like we just met. Does it?”

“No.” I licked my lips. “So, in three days when we leave here, I’m going to look down at my arm and see the words, that, that is not the saying. Because those were the first words you ever said to me out loud.”

He grinned. “I’d wanted to say it since the casino bar.”

“My way makes more sense.”

“Only for a fae.”

I snorted. “Well, luckily we both are, so . . .”

He cocked his head to the side. “By the way, what was that silver thing you handed me? That you thought you’d need when we burned that bridge?”

I felt my entire face turn bright-red. I groaned and sank into his hands still holding my face. “It was a condom.”

He frowned. “I do not know what that is?”

“Oh God.” I laughed. Of course, the one time I was brave enough to do one of Tallulah’s bold plans, I did it for a fae prince who didn’t even know what it was. “Um . . . well . . .”

“You’re blushing. Your aura is blushing.” He narrowed his eyes. “My curiosity must be sated now, dearest soulmate of mine.”

I sighed. “It’s a contraceptive.”

His brow furrowed.

I took a deep breath, then said it as fast as I could before I died of embarrassment. “ It’s a thin piece of rubbery material a man wears during sexual intercourse to prevent the spread of disease or conception of child. ”

His eyes widened and his brow shot to his hairline. A slow, sideways grin spread across his face. He leaned forward until our noses brushed. His hands slid into my hair. “So, that was what you thought of me when you first saw me?”

“No, not the first time.” I dragged my teeth over my bottom lip and his eyes tracked the movement. “But probably the third.”

He chuckled and his breath smelled like vanilla as it swept across my face. “And what if we had gotten to that bridge that night?”

I shrugged. “What if you weren’t injured right now?”

He laughed and pressed his forehead to mine. “Well, then I guess it’s a good thing I kept that little packet. One day I may need a demonstration of this human-made device.”

“ You kept it? ”

“I had to know what it was.”

“Fair warning, you’re probably not going to like it. Most guys hate it.”

“We’ll burn that bridge when we get there.”

I giggled and pulled his mouth down to mine. My entire world had gone up in smoke. My future was fragile. My responsibilities were suffocating. But this moment, and this male, were going to get me through it all.